The New York Times reported that production on the multi-million dollar new Julie Taymor musical has been temporarily halted, while the New York Post said that the show's actors — including Tony winner Alan Cumming and film actress Evan Rachel Wood — have been released from their contracts.
Despite these reports, the producers of the musical contend that the musical will open as scheduled. In fact, a spokesperson for the musical issued this statement to Playbill.com: "Hello Entertainment is aware of the speculation about the future of Spider-Man on Broadway and is re-confirming that the plan is to resume production shortly and preview on February 25th, 2010 at the Hilton Theatre when cash flow issues have been resolved."
Spider-Man, Turn Off The Dark features direction by Tony winner Taymor, music and lyrics by Bono and The Edge and a book by Taymor and Glen Berger.
Drawing from over 40 years of Marvel comic books, Spider-Man, according to press notes, "spins a new take on the mythic tale of a young man propelled from a modest rowhouse in Queens to the sky-scraping spire of the Chrysler Building, the bustling offices of the Daily Bugle, through the dizzying canyons of Manhattan, to new vistas never before seen. The musical follows the story of teenager Peter Parker, whose unremarkable life is turned upside-down — literally — when he's bitten by a genetically altered spider and wakes up the next morning clinging to his bedroom ceiling. This bullied science-geek — suddenly endowed with astonishing powers — soon learns, however, that with great power comes great responsibility as villains test not only his physical strength but also his strength of character. Spider-Man's battles will hurtle the audience through an origin story both recognizable and unexpected — yielding new characters as well as familiar faces — until a final surprising confrontation casts a startling new light on this hero's journey."
The creative team also includes choreographer Daniel Ezralow ("Across the Universe," The Green Bird), set designer George Tsypin (The Magic Flute, The Little Mermaid), costume designer Eiko Ishioka (Academy Award for "Bram Stoker's Dracula," Tony nomination for M. Butterfly), lighting designer Donald Holder (Tony Awards for The Lion King, South Pacific), sound designer Jonathan Deans (Fosse Young Frankenstein, Ragtime) and musical supervisor Teese Gohl ("Across the Universe," "Frida"). The musical will be produced on Broadway by Hello Entertainment/David Garfinkle, Martin McCallum, Marvel Entertainment/David Maisel, Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Jeremiah Harris. It will be produced in association with Omneity Entertainment/Richard Weinberg, the Mayerson/Gould/Hauser/Tysoe Group, Patricia Lambrecht and Jam Theatricals/S2BN Entertainment.
Interested theatregoers, who possess an AmEx card, can call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets will go on sale to the general public Sept. 12. Group tickets are also now on sale by calling (800) Broadway.
The Hilton Theatre is located in Manhattan at 213 West 42nd Street.
For more information visit www.SpidermanOnBroadway.com.
